Mining executive jailed

A FORMER mining executive has been sentenced to prison after pleading guilty to three counts of insider trading in the New South Wales Supreme Court.

A FORMER mining executive has been sentenced to prison after pleading guilty to three counts of insider trading in the New South Wales Supreme Court.

Bo Shi Zhu, also known as Calvin Zhu, appeared in court on Friday and was sentenced to two years and three months in jail.

Zhu, a former vice-president of Hanlong Mining, was found guilty of using inside information to reap more than $371,000 from illegal trades which took place between December 2006 and July 2011.

The illegal trades occurred during Zhu's investment banking career at two firms, Caliburn Partnership and Credit Suisse, and later as an executive of Hanlong Mining.

Zhu was ordered to serve a minimum of 15 months, pending good behaviour in prison.

In making the order, Justice Peter Hall took into consideration Zhu's early guilty plea and his high level of

co-operation with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, whose eight-month investigation - part of the multi-agency taskforce Project Wickenby - led to Zhu's arrest.

During the trial, the court heard that Zhu, in his time at Hanlong Mining, traded in shares and contracts for difference of Sundance Resources, and another Hanlong takeover target, Bannerman Resources, with former and current executives including Hanlong's former managing director Steven Xiao.

Millions were made in the trades, with the profits sent to accounts in Hong Kong. Xiao failed to return to Australia and authorities have conceded that he has fled the jurisdiction.

But Justice Hall said he was impressed with Zhu's behaviour during the trial, believing Zhu showed "genuine remorse and contrition".

Justice Hall also acknowledged that Zhu was a family man whose wife was expecting her second child in July. There seemed to be only a remote chance that Zhu would reoffend, Justice Hall said.

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